Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans or any DC character. However, I do own Ghost Blade.

Note: I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've been busy, not to mention the writer's block. Well, I did the best I could, hope you guys like it.

Ch 4: The Laughing Puppet

"I'm bored." Raven put her book down on the table in front of the couch. She had replaced the one she had broken with a more dark and exotic one. It had been difficult to find in the huge and abandoned mansion.

She decided she was in need of a shower and levitated over to the bath room connecting to the room she had clamed as her own. She unclasped the broach and let her cloak fall silently to the floor. She pulled off her leotard and quickly succumbed to a sharp pain. She looked at her lower abdomen and realized that she had ripped open a wound that hadn't fully healed; a Titan's experience. She was in for a slightly, painful shower.

She turned the knobs for the water temperature, making her shower a warm one. She slowly entered the shower and cringed as the water stun her wound, but once it passed the water felt nice. She washed her body with a bar of soap that smelt like vanilla, even though she knew her natural sent of lavender would overpower it in less then an hour. She washed her hair quickly and turned the shower off.

Raven spent close to seven minutes brushing her hair in front of the mirror wearing only a towel. She wouldn't normally do this, but she was lost in thought of a dream she had had recently. She had been wearing her normal clothes, but they had been white and her hair had been gone down to the middle of her back, straight but voluminous.

She finally snapped back to reality when her stomach alerted her of its emptiness with a growl. She run into her room and quickly dressed herself in a clean leotard and cloak. Her stomach's insists for food became more intense and left less room between each other. She hasted out of her room to heed the call of her body's need for food.

(--- --- ---)

Raven swallowed the last bite of a slice of pizza that had obviously been overlooked by Mammoth. She licked her fingers clean of any grease and finished her herbal tea.

She rose from her chair and turned to return to her room, but her eye was caught by the sight of the outside world through a window. As she walked towards the window, her eyes remained focused on the frame of the portal that reminded her that she was in a prison of her own making. She saw Mammoth running laps in the courtyard, who was being timed by a girl in a glossy, crimson dress; named Mirror. Jinx was sitting in a tree, relaxing. Raven was still learning there was more to Jinx then how she presented herself in battle. Raven looked towards the city and sighed. She had caged herself up for too long.

Raven turned towards a door as it opened and Brother Blood entered. "And, how are you today, Raven?" A grin of neither malice nor delight crept on to his half-human face.

"I need air." She turned to the door, but found that she couldn't move towards it. She turned back to Blood and gave him a death glare.

He chuckled at her weak attempt to scare him. "I am not as easily scared as your friends." She refused to let up. "You asked me to protect you from Slade, who even I would dread to have as an enemy, from your father, Trigon of all beings, and now you would disregard all that I have done for you, but I'll not lie and say that there was no self preservation in this. You wanted my help and now you have it, I'll not let you go to the city alone."

Raven walked closer to Blood. "I'll take Jinx with me." And with that said, she left the mansion and headed down to the courtyard.

As Raven walked through the courtyard, she realized that there were a lot more members of the HIVE with them then she originally thought. There had to be at least twenty-five HIVE students in the courtyard. But, she was only after one.

Raven stopped in front a maple tree. From inside the mansion, she had easily seen Jinx, but on ground level the female was invisible. "Jinx…" Was all Raven could get up before the pink haired hexedess jumped out of the tree and land next to the goth.

"Yes?" Jinx questioned once she had striated herself out.

"I'm going to a café in the city and was wondering if you'd like to join me?" Raven had had to force the words to sound friendly for that was her intent and the only reason she had chosen Jinx, there was a friendship growing between them.

Jinx nodded. "Sure. All I was doing up there was sleeping."

(--- --- ---)

A giant black raven of energy appeared in an alley and when it faded, two pale girls stood in an area that had only before been empty. They walked towards the street and found the café directly to their right. They entered without pause.

The café was dark, but it wasn't like Raven's favorite back home in Jump City. Raven and Jinx walked to a table and both ordered herbal tea. Apparently, it was open mic night because someone got up and started reading a poem aloud. Jinx turned her attention to the reader and Raven was doing the same thing when someone in particular stole her attention.

A woman in black leather was sitting at a wall on the far side of the café. She was no older then Raven than a year. Her height was 5'7 and her slim features matched with her auburn hair and green eyes made her very enticing, even to Raven who was indeed a heterosexual. Raven had seen this woman many times in Jump City. The woman looked at Raven and smiled, before finally turning her attention to the reader. Raven shook her head and finally placed her attention on the reader.

The next few hours were filled with talk of pasts and loved one, Raven speaking of Kid Flash and Jinx mostly asking about Cyborg. They finally decided that it was time to return to the mansion and away from spying eyes.

The two left the café and walked back into the alley. They get a good distance from the road and Raven starts to concentrate on the mansion when there's a loud sound. The noise is soon followed by a sharp pain in Raven's back. Bright green sparks pass her sides. Raven regains her balance and turns around to find Jinx already in a fighting stance. Laughter, that only an insane mind could create, comes from down the alley.

Raven focuses in on the laughter as Jinx starts her charge on a green and purple psychotic looking clown with bleached skin. He drops a cardboard tube labeled 'fireworks' and pulls out a silver revolver.

Jinx stops short and sends a hex at the gun as the clone pulls the trigger. A small pole pops out of the barrel and a small flag hangs from it saying 'bang'.

The clone looks at the flag and snarls. "Damn. That wasn't supposed to happen." Jinx smiles slightly and the clown shrugs. "Oh well." He runs to the side of Jinx while pulling out a small yellow ball. His laughter returns as he throws it at Jinx.

The ball explodes on contact with the ground and releases a yellow gas. Jinx tries in vain to escape the smoke, but before long she's on her knees and couching so badly that anyone in her position would be out in a matter of seconds. Jinx, however, would not give up that easily, she managed to pull herself out of the smoke cloud before passing out.

"Tough kid." The clown says after Jinx passed out. He turned towards Raven and threw some powder at her. She jumped back and when she looked at the clone again, she was met by a punch to her stomach. She fell to her knees and saw the kick coming for her face. She tried to bring forth her powers to block it, but they wouldn't heed her call. She fell backwards and didn't even try to get back up again.

The clown stood over her and all she could manage to get out was, "Who are you?"

He chuckled. "I'm called The Joker and I was sent by your father." As the words left his mouth, the mark of Scath appeared on his forehead and his insane laughter started all over.

Please post areview, I'm on my knees.